Queen, History and Discography 1968 – Present Day

Brian May, an astronomy student and Tim Staffell, a design student, formed a band called Smile.

1968 (June)

Roger Taylor successfully applied for the job of drummer with Smile.

1970 (early)

Tim Staffell left Smile and joined the band Humpy Bong.

1970 (early)

Tim Staffell’s friend Freddie Bulsara persuaded Brian May and Roger Taylor that he should replace Staffell as lead singer.

1970 (early)

Encouraged by Freddie, the band Smile changed their name to Queen.

1970 (27th June)

Mike Grose joined the group as bass guitarist.

1970 (18th July)

Queen made their first performance.

1970 (August)

Mike Grose was replaced by Barry Mitchell.

1971 (January)

Barry Mitchell left the group because he wanted to play a different style of music.

1971 (January)

Doug Ewood, known as Doug X, replaced Barry Mitchell.

1971 (21st February)

Queen played as supporting act for the group Yes at Kingston Polytechnic.

1971 (late February)

John Deacon became the new bass player for Queen.

1971 (Spring)

Queen made a demo tape of four of their songs ‘Liar’, ‘Keep Yourself Alive’, ‘The Night Comes Down’, ‘Jesus’. However, none of the recording companies it was sent to were interested in signing the band.

Queen signed a recording contract with Trident Studios. They were to be managed by Neptune Productions, a subsidiary of Trident, and would record new material at Trident Studios.

1973 (during)

Trident signed a recording contract with EMI.

1973 (13th July)

Queen released their first album entitled ‘Queen’. It reached number 83 in the US and number 47 in the UK.

1973 (November)

Queen went on tour as supporting act for the group Mott The Hoople.

1974 (23rd February)

The group released the single ‘Seven Seas of Rhye’. It reached number 10 in the UK charts.

1974 (March)

Queen made a tour of Britain to promote their second album.

1974 (8th March)

Queen released their second album Queen II. It reached number 5 in the UK charts and number 49 in the US.

1974 (April)

The group began a tour of America as supporting act to Mott The Hoople.

1974 (May)

Brian May collapsed on stage and the band had to abandon the tour of America. May was suffering from hepatitis which incapacitated him for some time.

1974 (11th October)

Queen released the double A-side single ‘Killer Queen/Flick of the Wrist’. It reached number 2 in the UK and number 12 in the US.

1974 (8th November)

The album ‘Sheer Heart Attack’ was released. It reached number 2 in the UK charts and number 12 in the US.

1975 (January)

Queen began a sell-out tour of the United States.

1975 (January)

The group hired a lawyer to get them out of their contract with Trident.

1975 (17th January)

The song ‘Now I’m Here’ from the album ‘Sheer Heart Attack’ was released as a single. It reached number 11 in the UK.

1975 (2nd April)

Queen played for the first time in Canada.

1975 (April)

Queen made a tour of Japan.

1975 (May)

Freddie Mercury received an Ivor Novello award for his song ‘Killer Queen’.

1975 (September)

Having left their agreement with Trident, Queen signed a management deal with John Reid.

1975 (October)

The group wanted to release ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ as a single but they were told that at 5 minutes and 55 seconds no radio station would play it and it would be a flop. Freddie Mercury gave a copy of the single to his friend, DJ Kenny Everett, telling him he was not to play it but Everett did play it and other radio stations followed suit.

1975 (31st October)

Queen released the single ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’. It stayed at number 1 in the UK charts for 9 consecutive weeks and sold over a million copies. It reached number 9 in the US charts. It was also the first single to be released with a music video.

1975 (November)

The group embarked on a tour of Europe, the United States, Japan and Australia to promote the album ‘Night At The Opera’.

1975 (21st November)

The album ‘A Night At The Opera’ was released. It reached number 1 in the UK charts and number 4 in the US.

1976 (January)

Freddie Mercury received an Ivor Novello Award for ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’.

1976 (18th May)

The song ‘You’re My Best Friend’ from ‘A Night AT The Opera’ was released as a single. It reached number 7 in the UK and number 16 in the US.

1976 (18th September)

As a thank you to their fans, Queen staged a free concert in Hyde Park, London.

1976 (12th November)

The song ‘Somebody To Love’ from the album ‘A Day At The Races’ was released as a single. It reached number 2 in the UK and number 13 in the US.

1976 (10th December)

The album ‘A Day At The Races’ was released. It reached number 1 in the UK and number 5 in the US

1977 (January)

Queen made a tour of the United States and Canada.

1977 (4th March)

The song ‘Tie Your Mother Down’ from the album ‘A Day At The Races’ was released as a single. It reached number 31 im the UK and 47 in the US.

1977 (May)

Queen began a tour of Europe.

1977 (20th May)

The song ‘Good Old Fashioned Lover Boy’ from the album ‘A Day At The Races’ was released as a single. It reached number 17 in the UK.

1977 (7th October)

The single ‘We Are The Champions’ with ‘We Will Rock You’ as the B side, was released. It reached number 2 in the UK and number 4 in the US. Both tracks were taken from the album ‘News Of The World’.

1977 (28th October)

The album ‘News Of The World’ was released. It reached number 4 in the UK and number 3 in the US.

1978 (February)

The group agreed a severance deal with manager John Reid and set up their own management structure.

1978 (10th February)

The song ‘Spread Your Wings’ from the album ‘News Of The World’ was released as a single. It reached number 34 in the UK.

1978 (April)

Queen embarked on a tour of Europe.

1978 (October)

Queen began a tour of the United States and Canada.

1978 (13th October)

The songs ‘Bicycle Race’ and ‘Fat Bottomed Girls’ from the album ‘Jazz’ were released as a double A-side single. The single reached number 11 in the UK and number 24 in the US.

1978 (10th November)

The album ‘Jazz’ was released. It reached number 2 in the UK and number 6 in the US.

1979 (5th January)

The song ‘Don’t Stop Me Now’ from the album ‘Jazz’ was released as a single. It reached number 9 in the UK charts. It fared less well in the United States only reaching number 86.

1979 (April)

The group embarked on a tour of Japan.

1979 (22nd June)

The live double album ‘Live Killers’ was released. It reached number 3 in the UK and number 16 in the US.

1979 (5th October)

The song ‘Crazy Little Thing Called Love’ from the album ‘The Game’ was released as a single. It reached number 2 in the UK and number 1 in the US.

1979 (December)

Queen performed at the Concert for the People of Kampuchea in London which had been organised as a charity event by Paul McCartney.

1980 (25th January)

The song ‘Save Me’ from the album ‘The Game’ was released as a single. It reached number 11 in the UK.

1980 (30th May)

The song ‘Play The Game’ from the album ‘The Game’ was released as a single. It reached number 14 in the UK and number 42 in the US.

1980 (30th June)

The album ‘The Game’ was released. It reached number 1 in the UK and US charts.

1980 (July)

The song ‘Another One Bites The Dust’ from the album ‘The Game’ was released as a single. It reached number 7 in the UK and number 1 in the US.

1980 (8th December)

Queen released their soundtrack to the film ‘Flash Gordon’ as an album. It reached number 10 in the UK and number 23 in the US.

1981 (February)

The group began a tour of South America, the first rock group to tour the continent.

1981 (6th April)

Roger Taylor released a solo album ‘Fun in Space’. It reached number 18 in the UK charts but did poorly in the US.

1981 (26th October)

Queen collaborated with the singer David Bowie on the single ‘Under Pressure’. It reached number 1 in the UK and number 29 in the US.

1981 (26th October)

Queen released the compilation album ‘Greatest Hits’ of hits from 1974 to 1980. It reached number 1 in the UK and number 11 in the US.

1982 (19th April)

The song ‘Body Language’ from the album ‘Hot Space’ was released as a single. It only reached number 25 in the UK but reached number 11 in the US.

1982 (21st May)

Queen released the album ‘Hot Space’. It reached number 4 in the UK and number 22 in the US.

1982 (9th August)

The song ‘Back Chat’ from the album ‘Hot Space’ was released as a single. It was not a big success, only reaching number 40 in the UK.

1982 (15th September)

Queen played their last concert in the United States with Freddie Mercury. Their popularity had declined in the States.

1983 (October)

Brian May released a mini album ‘Star Fleet Project’.

1984 (23rd January)

The song ‘Radio Ga Ga’ from the album ‘The Works’ was released as a single. It reached number 2 in the UK and number 16 in the US.

1984 (27th February)

Queen released the album ‘The Works’. It reached number 2 in the UK and number 23 in the US.

1984 (2nd April)

The song ‘I Want to Break Free’ from the album ‘The Works’ was released as a single. It reached number 3 in the UK and number 45 in the US.

1984 (25th June)

Roger Taylor released his second solo album ‘Strange Frontier’.

1984 (16th July)

The song ‘It’s a Hard Life’ from the album ‘The Works’ was released as a single. It reached number 6 in the UK but only managed number 72 in the US.

1984 (24th August)

Queen began a 9 month tour to promote their album ‘The Works’. The band controversially played in South Africa when many artists boycotted the country due to their policy of apartheid and were criticised for doing so.

1984 (10th September)

The song ‘Hammer to Fall’ from the album ‘The Works’ was released as a single. It reached number 13 in the UK.

1985 (13th July)

Queen performed some of their greatest hits at the Live Aid concert held at Wembley Stadium, London.

1985 (4th November)

The group released the song ‘One Vision’ from the album ‘A Kind of Magic’ as a single. It reached number 7 in the UK but only reached number 61 in the US.

1985 (2nd December)

A boxed set of Queen’s 12 albums to date entitled ‘The Complete Works’ was released.

1986 (during)

Queen contributed music to the soundtrack of the film ‘Highlander’.

1986 (17th March)

Queen released the song ‘A Kind of Magic’ from the album ‘A Kind of Magic’ as a single. It reached number 3 in the UK and number 42 in the US.

1986 (3rd June)

The album ‘A Kind of Magic’ was released. It reached No 1 in the UK album charts and number 46 in the US.

1986 (7th June)

Queen began a two month tour of Europe. It would be the last tour with Freddie Mercury and John Deacon.

1986 (9th June)

Queen released the song ‘Friends Will Be Friends’ from the album ‘A Kind of Magic’ as a single in Europe. It reached number 14 in the UK.

1986 (15th September)

Queen released the song ‘Who Wants To Live Forever’ from the album ‘A Kind of Magic’ as a single in Europe. It reached number 24 in the UK.

1987 (during)

Freddie Mercury was diagnosed with AIDS. The diagnosis was kept from the public.

1987 (during)

A 3 part documentary telling the story of the band’s rise to fame was filmed. It was called Magic Years.

1987 (August)

Roger Taylor formed a new band called The Cross.

1988 (13th April)

Roger Taylor’s band, The Cross released an album ‘Shove It’. It was not very well received.

1988 (8th October)

Freddie Mercury and Montserrat Caballe performed ‘Barcelona’ in Barcelona to celebrate the arrival of the Olympic flag from Seoul.

1988 (10th October)

Freddie Mercury and Montserrat Caballe released the album ‘Barcelona’. It reached number 15 in the UK and number 6 in the US.

1989 (2nd May)

Queen released the song ‘I Want It All’ from the album ‘The Miracle’ as a single. It reached number 3 in the UK and US charts.

1989 (22nd May)

Queen released the album ‘The Miracle’. It reached number 1 in the Uk and number 24 in the US.

1989 (19th June)

Queen released the song ‘Breakthru’ from the album ‘The Miracle’ as a single. It reached number 7 in the UK but did not make the US charts.

1989 (7th August)

Queen released the song ‘Invisible Man’ from the album ‘The Miracle’ as a single. It reached number 12 in the UK but did not make the US charts.

1989 (9th October)

Queen released the song ‘Scandal’ from the album ‘The Miracle’ as a single. It reached number 25 in the UK.

1989 (27th November)

Queen released the song ‘The Miracle’ from the album ‘The Miracle’ as a single. It reached number 21 in the UK.

1990 (during)

Freddie Mercury denied rumours that he was very ill.

1990 (18th February)

Queen were awarded for their ‘Outstanding Contribution to British Music’.

1990 (December)

Queen signed a new recording deal with Hollywood Records.

1990 (December)

Queen released the video ‘Queen at Wembley’ which had been recorded on 12th July 1986.

1991 (14th January)

Queen released the song ‘Innuendo’ from the album ‘Innuendo’ as a single. It reached number 1 in the UK.

1991 (5th February)

Queen released the album ‘Innuendo’ It reached number 1 in the UK and number 30 in the US.

1991 (4th March)

Queen released the song ‘I’m Going Slightly Mad’ from the album ‘Innuendo’ as a single. It reached number 22 in the UK.

1991 (13th May)

Queen released the song ‘Headlong’ from the album ‘Innuendo’ as a single. It reached number 14 in the UK.

1991 (5th September)

Queen released the song ‘These Are The Days of Our Lives’ from the album ‘Innuendo’ as a single. It reached number 1 in the UK.

1991 (14th October)

Queen released the song ‘The Show Must Go On’ from the album ‘Innuendo’ as a single. It reached number 16 in the UK and number 40 in the US.

1991 (28th October)

Queen released the compilation album ‘Greatest Hits II’. It reached number 1 in the Uk and .

1991 (23rd November)

Freddie Mercury publicly announced that he had AIDS.

1991 (24th November)

Freddie Mercury died of bronchial pneumonia which he had contracted as a complication of AIDS.

1991 (9th December)

A double A-side single, ‘Bohemian Rhapsody/These Are The Days of Our Lives’ was released. It reached number 1 in the UK charts

1992 (20th April)

The Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert was held in London. It raised more than £20 million for AIDS charities.

1992 (September)

Brian May released a solo album entitled ‘Back To The Light’. It reached number 6 in the UK.

1993 (19th April)

Queen, George Michael and Lisa Stansfield released an EP entitled ‘Five Live’. It featured music recorded at The Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert in 1992. It reached number 1 in the UK charts and number 30 in the US.

1995 (23rd October)

The song ‘Heaven For Everyone’ from the album ‘Made in Heaven’ was released as a single. It reached number 2 in the UK.

1995 (6th November)

Queen released the album ‘Made in Heaven’ which featured material previously recorded by Freddie Mercury. It reached number 1 in the UK and number 58 in the US.

1995 (11th December)

The song ‘A Winter’s Tale’ from the album ‘Made in Heaven’ was released as a single. It reached number 6 in the UK.

1996 (26th February)

The song ‘Too Much Love Will Kill You’ from the album ‘Made in Heaven’ was released as a single. It reached number 5 in the UK.

1996 (17th June)

The song ‘Let Me Live’ from the album ‘Made in Heaven’ was released as a single. It reached number 9 in the UK.

1996 (18th November)

The song ‘You Don’t Fool Me’ from the album ‘Made in Heaven’ was released as a single. It reached number 17 in the UK.

1997 (January)

The group performed ‘The Show Must Go On’ live with Elton John in Paris. It was the last time John Deacon performed. He retired after the concert.

1998 (5th January)

Queen released the single ‘No-One but You (Only the Good Die Young)’. The remaining members of Queen had been inspired to pen the track following the death of Diana Princess of Wales. They dedicated it to Freddie Mercury. It reached number 13 in the UK.

1998 (November)

The song ‘Another One Bites The Dust (Small Soldiers Remix)’ from the album ‘Greatest Hits III’ was released as a single. It reached number 5 in the UK.

1999 (8th November)

A compilation album ‘Greatest Hits III’ was released. It reached number 5 in the UK.

1999 (December)

The song ‘Under Pressure (Rah Mix)’ from the album ‘Greatest Hits III’ was released as a single.

2002 (18th October)

Queen were given a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

2003 (29th November)

Brian May and Roger Taylor performed at a concert organised by Nelson Mandela to raise awareness of AIDs.

2004 (late)

Brian May and Roger Taylor announced that they would join with Paul Rodgers and would embark on a tour. It was stressed that Rodgers was not replacing Freddie Mercury and that they would be billed as Queen and Paul Rodgers.

2005 (during)

Queen and Paul Rodgers began a World tour.

2006 (during)

Queen’s album ‘Greatest Hits’ became the UK’s best selling album ever.

2007 (December)

Queen and Paul Rodgers released the single ‘Say Its Not True’.

2008 (27th June)

Queen and Paul Rodgers performed at the Nelson Mandela 90th Birthday Tribute held in Hyde Park, London.

2008 (8th September)

Queen and Paul Rodgers released the single ‘C-lebrity’.

2008 (15th September)

Queen and Paul Rodgers released the album ‘The Cosmos Rocks’. It reached number 5 in the UK and number 47 in the US.

2008 (late September)

Queen and Paul Rodgers embarked on a World wide tour.

2009 (12th May)

Queen and Paul Rodgers split amicably.

2009 (20th May)

Brian May and Roger Taylor performed ‘We Are The Champions’ at the final of American Idol. Winner Kris Allen and runner up Adam Lambert sang vocals.

2009 (11th November)

The compilation album ‘Absolute Greatest’ was released. It reached number 3 in the UK.

2009 (November)

Brian May and Roger Taylor played ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ live for the UK TV show, The X Factor.

2010 (7th May)

Brian May and Roger Taylor announced that they were leaving EMI.

2010 (20th August)

It was announced that the group had signed anew deal with Island Records.

2011 (6th November)

Queen were given the Global Icon Award at the MTV Europe Music Awards. They performed ‘The Show Must Go On’ with Adam Lambert.

2012 (11th, 12th, 14th July)

Queen and Adam Lambert performed at the Hammersmith Apollo. Tickets sold out as soon as they went on sale.

2012 (3rd July)

Queen and Adam Lambert performed at the closing ceremony of the London Olympics.

2013 (20th September)

Queen and Adam Lambert performed in Las Vegas.

2014 (Summer)

Queen and Adam Lambert embarked on a 3 month tour of North America, Australia and New Zealand.

2014 (10th November)

The album ‘Queen Forever’ was released. It featured songs that had been recorded by Queen earlier but not used. It reached number 5 in the UK and number 38 in the US.

2016 (Summer)

Queen and Adam Lambert made a tour of Europe and Asia.

2016 (12th September)

Queen and Adam Lambert performed in Israel for the first time.

2017 (23rd June)

Queen and Adam Lambert began a 78 date Worldwide tour that would last 15 months.

Father - Jack Panayiotou Mother - Lesley Arnold Spouse - Not married Children - No children 1963 (25th June) A son, Georgios Kyriacos, was born to Jack Panayiotou, known as Jack Panos, a Greek Cypriot restaurant owner and his English wife, Lesley Angold in East Finchley,…